Smackdown and a few other thoughts

I actually caught the 2nd half of SD in its entirety last night which is more than I have in a few weeks so I want to discuss what I thought of it, but first a couple short notes from yesterday/today:

• Ken Kennedy was released yesterday by the WWE, after his in-ring 'comeback' from injury on Monday, and featuring in WWE Films' 'Behind Enemy Lines: Columbia' earlier this year. I think Kennedy was a bankable star with a future, who really wasted his talents and potential by testing positive on a drug test only weeks after going out and skewering Chris Benoit for the 'personal choices' he'd made in his life in terms of substance abuse, as well as frequent injuries, and a very open, warts-and-all interview style of late in which he has badmouthed Vince McMahon and the WWE. It's a shame such a talented all-round wrestler in-ring and on-mic had to be released, but obviously this working relationship had been dysfunctional for some time, and I'm more surprised they made him a highlight of Monday's Raw than that they released him.
• "The Golden Greek" John Tolos died at the age I believe of 76 in California. A wrestling legend in that state, Tolos' main national exposure came during a run as "The Coach" in WWE, managing Mr. Perfect towards the end of his last Intercontinental Title reign, and the midcard tag team Beverly Brothers. I'm too young to remember his contributions to the California wrestling scene, including a storied feud with Freddie Blassie, and mainly remember his run as Coach, but nonetheless as always, my condolences to the Tolos family and friends.

In terms of Smackdown - short hits: they progressed the Umaga-CM Punk feud well, didn't waste too much time on the Divas (and now I know why I tuned into SD last week to see two women rolling around in talcum powder! - my life is complete!), and the angle with the egotistical heels Edge and Chris Jericho vs. Jeff Hardy and Rey Mysterio, with Jericho jumping Mysterio and essentially a 2-on-1 on Jeff Hardy which left him lying, was a strong way to promote both of these upcoming matches at Extreme Rules. Definitely interested in the Smackdown offerings on this PPV, and the Raw side isn't looking half bad either. A good card coming up I think.

ITVR Cancelled This Week

Not a whole lot going on in the world of wrestling - the Denver Debacle was over, I'm in the (apparently) minority opinion along with Ari that this week's Raw was entertaining, if not exactly 'high art', the Hogans continue their war of words in divorce court, Ric Flair will most likely begin wrestling again overseas ...

We'll check out Smackdown tomorrow and maybe do an abbreviated show sometime over the weekend, but without a whole lot of news, the time it takes to find music, recall all the details of Raw enough to discuss them, uploading, etc. isn't worth it to give a half-hour show at most, and probably more like 15 mins. this week. We'd spend more time prepping and uploading than we'd spend actually broadcasting.

Having said that though at some point over this summer I'm pleased to announce we WILL be going live, which will give us the opportunity again to look for guests, and inspire us to watch more wrestling to have more of the on-air product to talk about at the very least. Meanwhile, next week is the week of Extreme Rules, so be sure and continue to check back here, and we'll be back on Wednesday as usual with our predix for that PPV, our thoughts on Smackdown and Raw, etc. And I'll continue to blog regularly as usual.

Lame us ...

So ITVR didn't go up tonight - Little Tyke has been providing for some tiring days with teething and growing pains and not liking to be alone all of a sudden (ie in his crib, in his room). Don't feel too bad about this as only two weeks of the last 6 or 8 have been canceled or late - still consistent enough generally to look into going live at some point this summer - but by way of explanation.

Nonetheless, never fear, we'll be back up and running tomorrow with our ITVR podcast - probably a shortened one as it's basically been a quiet week in the world of pro wrestling. Be sure and join us then, right here In This Very Ring.

WWE Raw

This is an entry I meant to put up yesterday but I had computer troubles -> anyone on my Facebook is aware I had to do a reformat. But regardless - my thoughts on Raw in no particular order:

• I think the handling of the Denver Nuggets situation was better than I expected; yes it was repeated throughout the show and yes it was cheesy; but not as bad as I thought it would be and it was very self-consciously, what it was. Vince poked as much fun at himself, at the Lakers and at other teams as at Kroenke and the Nuggets; although honestly, if my first name were Enis (rhymes with ...) I would not mess with someone like Vince McMahon, who has THAT sense of humour and a worldwide vehicle on which to exhibit it.
• I've enjoyed Brian Kendrick's auditioning of tag team partners these last couple of weeks; entertaining. Ringing the bell just before he was about to hit Festus was predictable but still funny. I'm wondering who he will finally settle on as a partner.
• I enjoyed Mr. Kennedy's return; I was hoping for/expecting a bigger name like Triple H or Shawn Michaels to reward LA's loyalty to the WWE and their stepping up to host Raw, but Kennedy's always entertaining as well.
• Santino Marella's match and angle were amusing; he vs. Vicki in a hogpen match should be amusing enough although as Ari pointed out ... who will end up in the pen? My money is on Vicki, as Santino is obviously meant to be seen as a face these days.

Overall a good Raw; yes very juvenile and reliant upon kitsch and humour (Goldust doing Jack Nicholson? Really?), but more entertaining than I expected, and they still managed to put some attention on the upcoming PPV despite this week's detour. Not bad, all things considered.

Tune in for Ari's and my discussion on all this and much more tomorrow, on our podcast of In This Very Ring.

Owen Hart

I know I mentioned this on In This Very Ring Thursday, and the anniversary of Owen Hart's death was yesterday (I was out of town) but I did want to take a moment to remember him. He was a man who everyone in the wrestling business respected and liked - how many can say that, in an industry where even the 'good guys' can whine, politic and hold grudges? He was good at what he did - great even - and yet he wanted out; wanted to do something which allowed him to spend more time with his family, provided him more security and safety, more time at home. And yet he must have loved it somehow, to have stuck with it.

I doubt he loved the last stupid stunt he was asked to do - and it's sad that we remember a man so full of life, on the anniversary of his death. But in a decade where way too many wrestlers have left us way too young, it remains Owen for whom I feel the most strongly 'Didn't deserve to go out like that', and who, in the end, I miss the most. Eddie Guerrero might have seemed the biggest waste; Chris Benoit might have seemed the most shocking and tragic; Owen Hart's was the most pointless and the just plain saddest; robbing us of a performer, but more importantly, his family of a husband and father.

I'm not going to deter the discussion here with the politics that attend his memory to this day - the WWE and Owen's fans wanting to remember his professional contributions with a Hall of Fame recognition, and his wife's hatred of the wrestling industry and her husband's professional legacy as a member of the Hart family, preventing such an honour from occuring. As a wrestling fan, I mourn Owen as well, feel he couldn't have hated the wrestling industry as much as Martha claims to have stayed in it so long, and I feel that either way he deserves to be recognized for his life's work as a professional, in an industry where he was so loved by his peers; however I am completely understanding of Martha's feelings towards wrestling as the industry which also robbed her of her husband and her children of their daddy, and after many, many happy years together he unquestionably loved her, too; no one knew him better, and she is the keeper of his legacy and of his children's memory. She has the right to do with that as she pleases.

I would just like to say here, however, in my own private and personal way, that Owen Hart, as a human being and a wrestler both, will always be a Hall of Famer to me, and will always watch over his family, and the fans he so clearly loved to entertain. I think he would be saddest that his ultimate legacy ended up dividing the very people his wonderful personality had served to unite; and hopefully we can remember him as someone who loved both his wife and children, AND his birth family and the sport/entertainment industry he so excelled at. We are united in grief, and in his memory. On this day, let us remember that.

ITVR

A day late and a dollar short but here - re-recorded to discuss today's press conference and updates about Monday's Raw.

Click the entry heading for a listen.

Addition

As per the previous entry, I wanted to add this ESPN interview w/Vince McMahon. Vintage Vince and sums up the story in a nutshell from his perspective.

We might re-record ITVR tomorrow if anything interesting comes out of his presser from the Hard Rock in NYC. Be sure and tune in.